Chapter 2253: Chapter 1943: Why Not Let Imperial Family Members Serve as Commander?

Deceit Suppression Bureau.

The atmosphere in the Deceit Suppression Bureau today was exceptionally heavy. The high-ranking officials gathered in the meeting hall, each displaying a serious expression, not saying a word.

The Empress Dowager had already set her sights on the Deceit Suppression Bureau, determined to make them take the blame for Lu Chen’s death. No matter how they refused, the Empress Dowager would likely find a reason to have Lu Chen dispatched abroad by the Bureau eventually.

At this time, whoever becomes the Commander of the Deceit Suppression Bureau, once something happens to Lu Chen, they would be the first to be targeted for revenge by the Zhen Nan Prince Manor.

At this moment, all the high-ranking officials in the Bureau looked towards the Commander’s seat at the top, the eagerness in their eyes from the past now absent.

After a long pause, Zou Yi, the Director of the Night Patrol Office, spoke up, "I think Director Xiong’s proposal is a good one. At this time, we should let Lord Fan return to the Bureau to take charge of the overall situation."

"What the Bureau needs now is not a strong person, but someone who can stabilize the morale of the people in the Bureau."

As long as they were smart, everyone in the Deceit Suppression Bureau understood that they had been drawn into the court struggle, and the Empress Dowager wanted the entire Bureau to take the blame for the Royal Family.

This caused many of the Deceit Suppressing Guards to consider leaving the Bureau. If something really happened to Lu Chen in the Bureau, it would surely be destroyed by the strong individuals from the Zhen Nan Prince Manor.

The strong individuals in the Prince’s Mansion had no way to deal with the Royal Family, given that the Royal Family had several Earth Realm Strong Persons as well, but they could easily flatten the entire Bureau.

After hearing Zou Yi’s words, Lu Yu spoke up, "But Lord Fan is currently bedridden, and he probably doesn’t want to return to serve as the Commander."

They all understood that Fan Yaodong was pretending to be sick to avoid taking the blame. Having finally resigned from that position, how could he agree to return to the Bureau?

After Lu Yu finished speaking, everyone fell into deep thought once again. If this continued, the morale in the Bureau would become even more unstable.

At this moment, a Commander from the Deceit Suppressing Guards entered the meeting hall, this Commander was the undercover agent arranged by the Bureau to protect Lu Chen.

Although Lu Chen was now at the Prince’s Mansion, he was still nominally a person from the Bureau. For his safety, the Bureau had to make a gesture, hence they sent a Commander to pretend to be a Deceit Suppressing Guard beside Lu Chen.

Upon entering the meeting hall, Zeng Shuo saluted the high-ranking officials of the Bureau, "Greetings to all the lords."

After speaking, he stepped aside.

Seeing Zeng Shuo had returned, Lu Yu immediately asked, "Zeng Shuo, if there’s nothing important, stay with Master Lu all the time; there’s no need to return. If there’s an important task from the Bureau, we will send someone to inform you."

Hearing Lu Yu’s words, Zeng Shuo replied, "Yes, sir."

After addressing Zeng Shuo’s matters, Lu Yu continued, "We’ll go to Lord Fan’s residence later to see and ask about his intentions, to see if he’s willing to come back and oversee."

After all, the Deceit Suppression Bureau was developed and expanded under Fan Yaodong’s leadership, and he probably wouldn’t want to see it decline.

Hearing Lu Yu’s words, Zeng Shuo understood they were discussing who would become the Commander of the Bureau. He wanted to suggest letting a Royal Family member take the position, but as a Commander, it was not his place to speak in such situations.

Zeng Shuo planned to mention this to Lu Yu privately after the meeting concluded.

At this moment, Xiong Qingcang proactively spoke, "If Lord Fan does not wish to return to the Bureau to take charge, who should we select as this Commander?"

"Anyway, I am not capable enough."

Xiong Qingcang was deeply afraid that he would be chosen as the Commander in the end, as he didn’t want to take the blame.

Seeing that Xiong Qingcang had brought it up, the high-ranking officials present glanced at each other, and their gazes turned towards Director Wu Feng of the Investigation Bureau. Wu Feng quickly said, "Don’t look at me. I only track strange and evil things and lack the strength or ability to manage the Bureau effectively."

Saying that, Wu Feng looked at Lu Yu and then said, "Director Lu is in charge of the Secret Storage Bureau. He not only understands strange and evil things but also has extensive experience in dealing with them. Having Director Lu assume the position of Commander would be a good choice."

Lu Yu looked speechlessly at Wu Feng, quickly saying, "I haven’t directly dealt with strange and evil things much, nor do I have much experience in eradicating them. Director Wu, please don’t make such claims."

"But Director Wu frequently goes out to track strange and evil things. If anyone is familiar with them, it’s certainly Director Wu."

Seeing everyone shirk the responsibility, Dong Zhenghong, Director of the Criminal Law Department, spoke up, "Alright, everyone stop pushing the responsibility around. We all know the current situation of the Bureau; no one would willingly take the position of Commander."

At this time, Xiong Qingcang said, "Someone has to step up and take charge of the situation, right?"

Saying this, Xiong Qingcang looked at the other people in the meeting hall and then said, "Don’t just stand there, come up with ideas if you have any suggestions."

None of the directors present would voluntarily step up to be the Commander. If Fan Yaodong were unwilling to return, they wouldn’t know what to do.

Honestly, even without a Commander, the Bureau could still function, albeit with scattered morale, which would cause the strange and evil things in Dazhou to become increasingly rampant.

Of course, for these high-ranking officials, their biggest worry was that the Empress Dowager might suddenly appoint someone as Commander, so someone had to step up first. Otherwise, any of them could suddenly be taken out to bear the blame.

At this point, Zeng Shuo stood up and said, "My lords, I have a suggestion; I’m not sure if it would be feasible."

Upon hearing Zeng Shuo’s words, Lu Yu asked directly, "What suggestion? Let’s hear it."

Zeng Shuo said, "How about letting a member of the Royal Family serve as the Commander of the Bureau?"

Hearing this, everyone present was momentarily stunned.

Having a Royal Family member serve as the Bureau’s Commander? Wouldn’t that mean the Bureau would be managed by the Royal Family in the future?

In that case, there would be no talk of the Bureau’s independence, as it would likely be constrained by the Royal Family in everything.

The Deceit Suppression Bureau held significant power, so no matter who was in the Bureau, they would not want to cede their power.

However, at this moment, Lu Yu suddenly thought of something and said, "Yes, why didn’t we think of this method? If a Royal Family member becomes the Commander, the Royal Family won’t be able to extricate themselves if something happens in the Bureau."

Although giving the position of Commander to someone from the Royal Family could potentially result in the Bureau losing some autonomy, after so many years of development, the Bureau’s internal structure was already solid. Despite some overt and covert struggles and a desire for more power, there was a consensus not to allow the court’s various forces and the Royal Family to interfere with the Bureau.